Department for Transport

British Transport Police: Finance

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 11 January 2016 to Question 20570, when the budget for the British Transport Police in 2016-17 will be established.

Claire Perry: The British Transport Police Authority set a budget of expected expenditure and income for the year 2016-17 on 28 January 2016.

British Transport Police: Finance

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the financial contribution of Transport for London to the British Transport Police budget is for (a) 2015-16 and (b) 2016-17.

Claire Perry: Transport for London (TfL) is expected to make a total financial contribution of £63,833,000 to the British Transport Police budget in the year running to 31 March 2016, which is around 10% higher than the contribution made in 2010/11. TfL’s contribution for 2016-17 is to be confirmed in the near future.

Luton Airport: Railways

Mr Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to improve the frequency of services to Luton Airport Parkway in the 2018 East Midlands franchise specification.

Claire Perry: Detailed work on the 2018 East Midlands franchise specification will begin in the Spring, and as with all franchise competitions, a public consultation exercise will take place later this year to help inform the specification for the next long-term franchise.

Shipping: Training

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many seafarer (a) cadets and (b) ratings were trained by shipping companies operating in the UK in each year since 2000-01.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) does not collate figures for seafarer cadets and ratings who have been trained by shipping companies operating in the UK. However, the MCA does collate the number of new cadets, the number of cadets in training and the number of trainee watch ratings who start training each year and these can be found in the tables below. The figures in Table 1 show the number of cadets supported by the Support for Maritime Training (SMarT) scheme who started training in each year since 2000-01. YearOfficer cadets currently in trainingNumber of which are SMarT1 new entrants2000/0110204702001/0210104502002/0310005602003/0410306602004/0510505602005/0611105702006/0714306902007/0817008502008/0918009302009/1018307502010/1118408502011/1219009002012/1319907802013/1419407902014/151920820 Table 1: UK officer cadets under SMarT1 scheme (1999-2015) These figures are derived from SMarT returns for SMarT1 training and may include a small number of EU trainees resident in the UK. Numbers are rounded to nearest 10. The figures in Table 2 below show the number of watch rating trainees who have been supported by SMarT each year since 2011-12. The data held by the MCA for ratings training prior to 2011-12 includes concessionaire training and does not provide an accurate reflection of watch rating training. YearWatch Rating Trainees2011/12322012/13132013/14122014/154

Railways: Tickets

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department has taken to monitor compliance with the Office of Rail and Road's guidance, published in March 2015, in respect of advertising the cheapest possible tickets from ticket offices on or near self-service machines.

Claire Perry: As part of its role as a designated consumer body under Part 8 of the Enterprise Act 2002, the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) has a role in ensuring compliance with consumer law. As part of this, it worked with the industry to oversee the introduction of a Code of Practice on Retail Information, published in March 2015. It was under this remit that the ORR wrote to all train operators in May 2015, seeking to establish levels of compliance with the code and the law that it reflects. In September 2015, the ORR published an update document, setting out how train operators are performing and what actions are needed to improve the retail experience for customers in line with consumer law. A copy of this document can be found here: http://orr.gov.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/19192/Retail-Info-cop-update-nextsteps.pdf Train operators have already made improvements and passengers are benefiting from better on-screen information at stations and at many ticket machines. But there is clearly more to be done and, working alongside the ORR in its role as consumer regulator, I continue to push the industry to address the remaining issues as soon as possible.

Railways: South West

Johnny Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the GRIP 2 studies required for the Peninsula Rail Task Force's survey will be available in order for the survey to be completed in June 2016.

Claire Perry: Department for Transport officials are working with Network Rail and the Peninsula Rail Task Force within the context of the changes that will come from Hendy re-profiling and the Bowe review to establish which further studies are required to inform the Peninsula Rail Task Force report of June 2016 and the funding that could be available to support this development work.

Home Office

Extradition: Pakistan

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been extradited from Pakistan to the UK in each of the last five years.

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, under what arrangements people can be extradited from Pakistan to the UK.

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans she has to negotiate an extradition treaty with Pakistan.

James Brokenshire: Between 1 January 2010 and 31 December 2015 there were no extraditions from Pakistan to the UK.There is no bilateral extradition treaty between the UK and Pakistan and, unless a multilateral convention applies, extradition is on the basis of reciprocity.The Government will neither confirm nor deny whether it is considering or is involved in negotiations with a particular country regarding an extradition treaty.

Metropolitan Police: News International

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people employed by the Metropolitan Police Service are former employees of News International.

Mike Penning: The Home Office does not hold data centrally on the number of people employed by the Metropolitan Police Service who were former employees of News International.Individual police forces in England and Wales are responsible for deciding when and how they run their recruitment and selection processes.Decisions on whether to recruit individuals are for the chief officer of the police force concerned.

Islamic State

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the total number of people from the UK who have joined Daesh.

Mr John Hayes: We believe approximately 800 UK linked individuals of national security concern have travelled to take part in the Syrian conflict since it began. Of those who are known to have travelled, about half have returned.

Crimes of Violence: Females

Sarah Champion: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what account her Department will take of women (a) with mental health needs, (b) who are homeless, (c) who are living in poverty and (d) who have other complex needs in its Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy.

Karen Bradley: Holding answer received on 03 February 2016



The Government will shortly publish an updated Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) strategy which will set out how we will support all victims of VAWG, including those with mental health needs, those who are homeless or living in poverty and those who have other complex needs, by doing more to prevent these crimes from happening, intervening earlier, and continuing to improve the protection for victims and to bring offenders to justice.The Government has already committed £40m for domestic abuse services including refuges between 2016 and 2020, provided a £2m grant to Women’s Aid and SafeLives to support a new domestic abuse early intervention project, protected funding of over £6.4m to 86 female Rape Support Centres for 2016/17, and committed to a further year of funding to support the local provision of 144 Independent Domestic Violence Advisers (IDVAs) and 87 Independent Sexual Violence Advisers for 2016/17.

Marriage Certificates

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reason she has not yet brought forward proposals to include the names of mothers on their children's marriage certificates.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Bahrain: Foreign Relations

Mr Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policy on Bahrain of the analysis and conclusions of the report by Americans for Democracy and Human Rights in Bahrain, entitled Shattering the Façade, published in November 2015.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We have noted the report by Americans for Democracy and Human Rights in Bahrain which assesses the progress the Government of Bahrain is making against the recommendations of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry Report (BICI). In June 2014, the UN Human Rights Council presented similar findings by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. That is why we continue to encourage plus support the Government of Bahrain in ensuring full implementation of the BICI recommendations, as well as those accepted in their UN Human Rights Council Universal Periodic Review. We are offering UK assistance to help them achieve this.

Human Trafficking: Zika Virus

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the UN, the EU and South American countries on the trafficking of women in countries affected by the Zika virus.

Mr Hugo Swire: We have not held specific discussions with the UN, EU and South American countries linking the trafficking of women and the Zika virus. However, this Government has a track record of leadership on the trafficking of women. Last spring, the UK became the first country in Europe and one of the first in the world to enact Modern Slavery legislation. In June, my Right Honourable Friend, the member for Witney, the Prime Minister (Mr. Cameron) agreed an action plan with the Heads of Government of Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean to strengthen cooperation on human trafficking. We were also strong proponents of the inclusion of a commitment to end modern slavery at the 2015 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting and in the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Haiti: Elections

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the implications of the cancellation of presidential elections in Haiti.

Mr Hugo Swire: The postponement of the second round of the Presidential elections in Haiti is regrettable and given the uncertainty about what happens once President Martelly's mandate comes to an end on 7th February. The international community is pressing the Haitian authorities to set a date for the postponed second round of the Presidential elections as soon as possible. Our Embassy in Port-au-Prince continues to monitor the situation closely.We reiterate our support for the EU Election Observer Mission's view that the first round of the Presidential elections was credible and that a second round with the top two candidates should have taken place. It is therefore important that all sides work together to agree a date for the second round as soon as possible.

Haiti: Politics and Government

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the UN stabilization meeting in Haiti in maintaining security in Haiti.

Mr Hugo Swire: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office maintains close links with the UN Stabilisation Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) through our Embassies in Port-au-Prince and Santo Domingo, and our offices at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. MINUSTAH has made a significant contribution to Haiti’s stability and law and order. However the main focus now should be continuing to build the capacity of the justice sectors and Haitian National Police to allow the Haitian government to take responsibility for their own national security.

Bahrain: Politics and Government

Mr Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to advance democratic rights in Bahrain.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: Governance of Bahrain is a matter for all political parties in Bahrain. That is why we encourage all political parties, including Al Wefaq who boycotted elections in November 2014, to engage constructively in political dialogue in order to reach an inclusive political settlement. Although we were disappointed by the opposition’s decision to boycott the 2014 elections, we commended the participation of a broad range of candidates which saw 14 independent Shia candidates win seats, of which three were women.We regularly discuss human rights and reform with the Government of Bahrain including at the biannual UK-Bahrain Joint Working Group meeting which was most recently held in November 2015. Reform programme activities delivered through the Causeway Institute have used lessons from Northern Ireland to improve community outreach and communication – particularly to a youth audience.

Libya: Islamic State

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to support military efforts to tackle Islamic State in Libya.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We are extremely concerned about the growing threat from extremist groups in Libya, including Daesh. The recent attacks in the Oil Crescent and Zliten in western Libyan highlight the threat these groups pose to the stability of Libya and the region, and potentially to the UK and our interests. We are working closely with international partners to deepen our understanding of Daesh’s presence in Libya and to develop a comprehensive approach to defeating it.This includes working closely with Libya’s neighbours to enhance their ability to protect themselves against threats from terrorists in Libya and prevent weapons’ smuggling across the region.We continue to urge all Libyans to unite against these extremists. A lasting and inclusive political agreement and the establishment of a Government of National Accord (GNA) is the best way to tackle the threat in the long term. Engaging with the new Libyan Government on this issue will be a high priority.

Libya: Politics and Government

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to help stabilise Libya.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: I welcome the important progress that has been made towards the establishment of the new Libyan government. Along with the UN and our international partners, we continue to urge all parties to resolve remaining issues quickly, so that the new government can address the challenges Libya faces. The UK Government has been at the forefront of efforts to coordinate international support for a Government of National Accord (GNA).The UK hosted a meeting with the UN in October to discuss plans for coordinated support from the international community to the GNA. Representatives of 40 countries, UN agencies, and international bodies, as well as a number of independent Libyan experts attended. This has been followed up through UN-hosted coordination meetings in Tunis. The UK will continue to support UN efforts in this area.I spoke with Libyan PM designate Fayez Serraj on 23 January and made clear the UK remains ready to support the new Libyan Government.

Maldives: Legal Systems

Stephen Gethins: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the independence of the legal system in the Maldives.

Mr Hugo Swire: We are concerned about the erosion of judicial independence in the Maldives. A 2013 UN report by the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers raised serious questions about the impartiality of judges, the fact that many interventions by courts were arbitrary and that due process was not being followed. We do not believe that the situation has improved since. I raised the issue of judicial independence when I met key members of the Maldives government, including President Yameen, during my visit to the Maldives on 17 and 18 January.

Mohamed Nasheed

Stephen Gethins: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Maldives government on the unconditional release of former President Nasheed.

Mr Hugo Swire: During my visit to the Maldives on 17 and 18 January I met key members of the Maldives government, including President Yameen, and reiterated our call for the release of all political prisoners. The UK welcomed the Maldivian government’s decision on 18 January to allow former President Nasheed to travel to the UK for medical treatment. As the Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron) said to the House during PMQs on 27 January, we now want to see further steps taken by the Maldives government including the release of political prisoners.

Burundi: Genocide

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports he has received of alleged mass graves in Burundi.

Mr Philip Hammond: I am deeply concerned by the discovery of alleged mass graves in Burundi. I am aware that the UN is currently analysing satellite images to investigate reports of at least nine mass graves, including one in a military camp said to contain more than 100 bodies. There must be an impartial investigation into these allegations. Where crimes have been committed, those responsible must be prosecuted. In the margins of the African Union Summit the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Rochford and Southend East (James Duddridge) met the African Union’s Peace and Security Commissioner, Smail Chergui, and the Burundian Minister of External Relations and International Cooperation, Alain Nyamwite. He strongly urged the Burundian Government to accept responsibility for what was happening in their country and to take decisive action to improve the situation. We are exploring what more we can do to support the African Union’s leadership, and have intensified our efforts at the UN and with our EU partners to halt the violence in Burundi.

Nuclear Disarmament

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the UK was represented at the recent UN working group meeting on nuclear disarmament in Geneva.

Mr Philip Hammond: The UK did not attend the recent organisational meeting for the working group established by UN General Assembly Resolution 70/33 entitled “Taking forward multilateral nuclear disarmament negotiations”. As detailed in PQ 23329, the UK, along with the four other Non-Proliferation Treaty Nuclear Weapons States, voted against this resolution. The Government believes that productive results can only be ensured through a consensus-based approach that takes into account the wider global security environment.

Attorney General

Lloyds Bank

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Attorney General, pursuant to the Answer of 20 January 2016 to Question 22432, how the Director of the Serious Fraud Office measures the undermining of UK PLC commercial or financial interests in the (a) City of London and (b) UK.

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Attorney General, pursuant to the Answer of 20 January 2016 to Question 22432, by what measure the Director of the Serious Fraud Office judges whether there is a significant public interest element in a case.

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Attorney General, pursuant to the Answer of 20 January 2016 to Question 22432, what measure the Director of the Serious Fraud Office uses to judge actual or potential economic harm.

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Attorney General, pursuant to the Answer of 20 January 2016 to Question 22432, what the figure is for high actual or potential loss listed in the Statement of Principle.

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Attorney General, pursuant to the Answer of 20 January 2016 to Question 22432, whether a case considered by the Serious Fraud Office must meet all Statement of Principle considerations.

Robert Buckland: The Criminal Justice Act 1987 provides that “The Director may investigate any suspected offence which appears to him on reasonable grounds to involve serious or complex fraud.”Each case is assessed on its own facts and merits.The Statement of Principle sets out some of the factors that the Director will take into account when considering the matter for investigation. All of these will be considered, and there is no minimum requirement or measure in respect of the different factors.Each on its own or taken in combination can establish sufficient grounds for the Director to decide that the case is sufficiently large, complex or of wide public interest that it should be dealt with by the Serious Fraud Office.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership: Taxation

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, with reference to the letter from Lord Livingston of Parkhead to the Chairman of the European Scrutiny Committee of 3 July 2014, Deposited Paper DEP2015-0877, what progress HM Revenue and Customs has made establishing a cross departmental working group to take forward the modelling of the tax implications of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership.

Anna Soubry: HM Revenue and Customs has been in discussion with HM Treasury and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills to determine the parameters, principles and feasibility of a tax model. HMRC has also consulted with international organisations to consider best practice in this area. Further meetings are planned following the next round of negotiations when we expect some of the parameters for the model will become clearer.

Sexual Offences: Universities

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many sexual assaults and rapes have taken place at UK universities in each of the last three years.

Joseph Johnson: This information is not held centrally by Government, although polices forces will record cases of sexual assault and rape. At the request of the Government, Universities UK has set up a task force that will bring together relevant stakeholders to explore what more can be done to support the higher education sector to prevent, and respond effectively, to incidents of violence and sexual harassment against women, hate crimes and other forms of harassment. The task force is considering a range of potential measures, and its work includes an analysis of the nature and scale of the problem.

Money Lenders

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, when he last held discussions with the National Trading Standards Board on plans to reduce funding for Illegal Money Lending Units.

Nick Boles: My Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills has not held discussions with National Trading Standards Board on plans to reduce funding for illegal money lending units.

Franchises

James Heappey: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 28 December 2015 to Question 19725, if, when considering complaints on breaches of the Trading Schemes Act 1996, his Department will take into account the contents of franchisees' contracts on the terms of trade and the relationship between the franchisee, master franchisor in the UK and overseas franchisor in order to determine (a) the number of master franchisors in the UK of an overseas based franchisor and (b) if the trading scheme was subject to the Trading Schemes Regulations, whether its contracts complied with those regulations; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Boles: Further to the answer given on 28 December to question UIN 19725, the Department, or any authority investigating, would take into account all the relevant circumstances and the applicability of relevant legislation, before deciding whether to pursue a case.

Apprentices: Taxation

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the potential financial implications for small businesses with 100 employees or fewer of the  Apprenticeship Levy.

Nick Boles: Employers with a pay bill of less than £3m will not have to pay the levy. This is more than 98% of all employers. Small employers will continue to have access to government funding to support apprenticeships. Until the levy comes in, the apprenticeships scheme will continue to operate as it does now.

Arms Trade: Trade Promotion

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will it his policy not to provide financial assistance under the Tradeshow Access Programme in cases in which (a) doing so would contribute to the sale of security equipment to countries with poor human rights records and (b) that equipment could contribute to human rights abuses.

Anna Soubry: Financial assistance under the Tradeshow Access Programme is only offered to companies whose products comply with the United Kingdom’s strict export control legislation and in respect of all relevant international treaties and obligations.

UK Trade and Investment: North of England

Jim McMahon: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, which organisations contributed to UK Trade and Investment's Northern Powerhouse Investment Pitchbook; and who provided the assessment and shortlisting of developments included in that document.

Anna Soubry: The following organisations contributed to the Northern Powerhouse pitchbook: Allied London; Carlton Power Limited; Cheshire East Council; Foresight Group; Halite; Leeds City Council; Liverpool Vision; London and Continental Railways; Manchester City Council; Manchester Place; MIDAS, Manchester’s Inward Investment Agency; Newcastle City Council; Peel Group; Scarborough Group; Sheffield City Council; Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council; and Warrington & Co. Overall shortlisting was done by UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) in consultation with HM Treasury.

Universities: Developing Countries

Craig Whittaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what support his Department is providing to universities to increase collaboration with research institutions in developing economies.

Joseph Johnson: The Government is supporting collaboration with research institutions in developing countries through a number of programmes, including the Newton fund, which now operates in 15 countries. We recently announced the extension of the Newton fund to 2021, with total investment rising to three quarters of a billion pounds between 2014/15 – 2020/21. In addition, at the Spending Review, the Chancellor announced a new Global Challenges Research fund worth £1.5 billion over the next five years (2016/17 - 2020/21).

Parkinson's Disease: Research

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether the National Dementia Research Institute will conduct research into Parkinson's dementia as part of its core work.

Joseph Johnson: I refer my hon Friend to the answer I gave to Question UIN 18130

Apprentices: Mental Illness

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what guidance his Department provides to employers on supporting young apprentices with mental health conditions.

Nick Boles: Employers must fulfil their duties as set out in the Equality Act 2010 for apprentices as they would for other employees. Under the Equality Act (2010), employers have a duty to make reasonable adjustments for employees with disabilities (including mental health impairment) in order to ensure that they have the same access to everything that involves gaining or keeping employment as a non-disabled person. Advice is also available to help employers and training providers understand disabilities and how to better support disabled apprentices. We have funded NIACE to produce an employer toolkit http://www.employer-toolkit.org.uk/ for employers who want to develop a more inclusive and accessible apprenticeship offer.An Apprenticeships Equality and Diversity Advisory group helps government understand and address any apprenticeship equality and diversity issues in order to reduce barriers and make apprenticeships as inclusive as possible.

Drugs: Investment

Kit Malthouse: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he is taking to maintain the UK's position as a market for investment by global pharmaceutical companies.

George Freeman: This Government is committed to maintaining and building on the UK’s position as a leader in the global market for investment in health and life sciences – the UK is the number one destination for life science FDI in Europe, and pharmaceutical exports grew 23% in the first three quarters of 2015. Through the Life Sciences Strategy we are working across Government to improve the UK’s competitiveness to stimulate investment, including by protecting the ring-fenced science budget in real terms and increasing funding in real terms to the Catapults which play a key role in commercialising innovation.

Science: Investment

Kit Malthouse: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will make an assessment of the link between government support for UK Life Sciences and pharmaceutical research and development investment in the UK.

George Freeman: Our latest estimates show that collective Government support through the Life Science Strategy has stimulated more than £6 billion in new investment by the life sciences industry linked to more than 17,000 new sector jobs. Underpinning this success is the UK’s world class science base and an increasingly strong and informed relationship between our universities and wider life sciences community, which is a key attractor for investment by domestic and overseas companies. Through the Accelerated Access Review the government is making this country a world leading place to design, develop and deploy medical innovations, stimulating investment and creating a stronger NHS.

Students: West Midlands

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate he has made of the number of student loan borrowers with post-2012 student loan arrangements in (a) Birmingham, Ladywood constituency, (b) the City of Birmingham and (c) the West Midlands metropolitan county.

Joseph Johnson: The Student Loans Company (SLC) administers student support for the UK Government and Devolved Administrations. Information on the number of borrowers is published annually by the SLC in the Statistical First Release, Student Loans in England: http://www.slc.co.uk/official-statistics/student-loans-debt-and-repayment/england.aspx At the end of the financial year 2014-15, there were: (a) 3,810, (b) 27,040, and (c) 112,340, borrowers on post-2012 student loan arrangements who had been domiciled in: (a) Birmingham, Ladywood constituency, (b) the City of Birmingham and (c) the West Midlands, when they applied for financial support.

Science

Kit Malthouse: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps his Department is taking to support the life sciences industry.

George Freeman: This Government recognises that health and life sciences industries are a key source of future growth and is committed through the Life Sciences Strategy to providing a supportive wider business environment in which these industries can flourish, so that the UK can be the best place in the world to develop and launch innovative medicines, technologies and diagnostics. Priorities include: simplifying the adoption of transformative products within the NHS through the Accelerated Access Review; supporting new and growing markets and disruptive technologies – such as digital health and genomics; and working across Government to improve the UK’s competitiveness to stimulate investment and drive export growth. Our latest estimates show collective Government support since the Life Science Strategy launched has stimulated more than £6bn in new investment by the life science industry linked to more than 17,000 new sector jobs.

Manufacturing Industries: Skilled Workers

Phil Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policy on apprenticeships of the finding of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers in its report, Engineered in Britain, published in December 2015, that more than half of manufacturers think that a lack of skilled people is the biggest danger to UK manufacturing.

Nick Boles: Skills policy is a devolved area so the Devolved Administrations have complete flexibility over how to support businesses in all sectors to ensure there are sufficient skilled workers. In England, our 2020 Vision sets out how we will reach 3 million apprenticeship starts by 2020. We are supporting the growth of apprenticeships in all sectors by working with large and small businesses to begin or expand their programmes, setting new expectations for public sector bodies, and through public procurement. Employer-led reforms continue to improve the quality of apprenticeships, with employers designing new apprenticeship standards that fully meet their skills needs. Employers in the advanced manufacturing and engineering sector are involved in developing apprenticeship standards in over 30 occupations, including aerospace engineer and manufacturing engineer.

Employment: Telephone Services

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what recent steps he has taken to advertise the ACAS-administered Pay and Work Rights Helpline to seafarers recruited from overseas to work in the UK shipping industry.

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he is taking to ensure effective enforcement of the National Minimum Wage in the maritime sector.

Nick Boles: My Department has worked with Maritime bodies to increase awareness of the National Minimum Wage (NMW) enforcement options available, including the ACAS helpline and HMRC enforcement operations. The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills is working with the sector to agree specific NMW guidance for seafarers. This guide will provide more information on the UK and International maritime law and raise awareness of enforcement measures in place to help anyone who needs them. The guide will advertise the ACAS helpline. I have also met with the hon Member for Gateshead (Ian Mearnes), Convenor of the RMT, to discuss the enforcement of the NMW and how we can raise awareness of enforcement action further.

Further Education

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what plans he has to provide assistance to further education institutions which incur financial penalties as a result of triggering break clauses in the loan agreements they hold with banks resulting from his Department's area reviews.

Nick Boles: As independent institutions colleges involved in an area review are responsible for their own financial arrangements with banks and other creditors. Area reviews are the mechanism through which post-16 institutions have the opportunity to work together to ensure that provision best suits local educational and economic needs. We expect that the recommendations of each review will lead to institutions that are financially sustainable. The costs including any financial penalties arising from the recommendations of each review will be explored as part of the process. We expect the colleges, alongside local authorities and LEPs with devolved skills budgets, to consider how these costs can be met locally. Where there are costs that cannot be met, but which are essential to the successful implementation of the review, we have announced a facility for transitional funding to support this. We will provide more detail in due course.

Holiday Leave: Pay

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 22 January 2016 to Question 22596, what assessment he has made of the net negative impact on business of the Employment Appeal Tribunal decision in Bear Scotland and other court decisions relating to holiday pay.

Nick Boles: The Department has produced an Impact Assessment of the implications for business of holiday pay cases such as Bear Scotland. This was published alongside the Deduction from Wages (Limitation) Regulations 2014, which limit backdated holiday pay claims to two years from 1 July 2015. The Impact Assessment can be found on the legislation.gov.uk web site at this link http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2014/3322/impacts

Apprentices: Standards

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 27 January 2016 to Question 23508, by what mechanisms his Department plans to check and monitor standards and quality of apprenticeships until the Institute for Apprenticeships is fully operational in April 2017.

Nick Boles: Existing quality checks will remain in place until the Institute for Apprenticeships is fully operational in April 2017. These include scrutiny and approval of standards and assessment plans by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, the Department for Education, Skills Funding Agency and education advisors, inspection of training provision by Ofsted, and quality assurance of qualifications by Ofqual. Employer-led reforms continue to improve the quality of apprenticeships, providing the skills that employers need. All apprenticeships must be full time paid jobs; have a minimum duration of 12 months and involve substantial, sustained training including at least 20% off-the-job training. Apprentices develop transferable skills and English and maths to enable them to progress in their careers. New quality measures for training providers and assessment organisations have also been developed to help employers make informed choices.

Further Education

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what discussions his Department has had with local businesses and LEPs on the economic effect of the area reviews for further education.

Nick Boles: Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEP) have a central role to play in supporting area reviews and are contributing to the analysis of the current and future economic and educational needs of their area. They are also supporting the review process through their wider economic development role and use of their potential resource leverage including capital funding and other related funding streams like European Social Funding. Being impartial and economically driven, LEP involvement is allowing the business voice to feature largely in discussions and to ensure there is a full understanding of employer demand. There is regular contact with the LEP network and with individual LEPs through the local steering group arrangements. In addition local employers are being actively engaged in each area review through the wide range of stakeholder engagement taking place. LEPs and the British Chamber of Commerce are also represented on the National Area Review Advisory group which is influencing how the area reviews are taken forward.

Revenue and Customs: Telephone Services

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many full-time equivalent staff were employed by HM Revenue and Customs' Pay and Work Rights Helpline in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2014-15 and (c) 2015-16; and what funding was provided to that team in each of those years.

Nick Boles: Broadcasting Support Services (BSS) was contracted in 2009 to run the Pay and Work Rights Helpline (PWRH) until March 2015. In April 2015 Acas took over responsibility for providing a one stop shop for workers and employers seeking advice on a wider range of employment matters. The budget was: 2009/10 - £968k, with 9 members of staff; and in 2014/15 it was £750k, with 7 members of staff. The cost of the service was then absorbed by Acas within their existing helpline functions when they took over responsibility for handling calls previously dealt with by the PWRH.

ERASMUS: UK Membership of EU

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the UK voting to leave the EU on UK students' participation in the Erasmus scheme.

Joseph Johnson: The Government is fighting hard to fix the aspects of EU membership that cause so much frustration in the United Kingdom - so we get a better deal for our country and secure our future. We are confident that the right agreement can be reached.

Teachers: Standards

Dr Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will estimate what proportion of the cost of introducing the proposed Teaching Excellence Framework will fall to (a) central government and (b) universities.

Joseph Johnson: We recently published the Green Paper “Fulfilling our potential: Teaching Excellence, Social Mobility and Student Choice,” which sets out our proposals for delivering the Teaching Excellence Framework and reducing the regulatory burden on the sector. The consultation period closed on 15 January 2016. Once we have considered the consultation responses, and are in a position to publish our final proposals, we will publish a Regulatory Impact Assessment which will set out the costs of implementation.

Department for International Development

Armed Conflict: Children

Martyn Day: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether she plans to discuss the issue of education for children in areas of conflict at the World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul in May 2016; and what plans she has to ensure children have access to education in those areas.

Mr Desmond Swayne: Education will be a significant theme in the World Humanitarian Summit and we will use this opportunity to promote our aims to improve learning outcomes, to reach all children in fragile states, and to keep girls in school.DFID supports children overseas to go school and continuing learning even when they are forced from their homes. This includes our flagship £355 million Girls’ Education Challenge that will enable up to 1 million more of the world’s most marginalised girls to benefit from an education of sufficient quality and transform their lives. In addition, DFID is supporting improvements to how the international community provides education in emergencies, including support for the ‘No Lost Generation’ Initiative to provide over 251,000 Syrian children with formal and informal education inside Syria and in the region, allowing them to catch up on lost learning time and sit public school examinations.

Gurkhas: Homelessness

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assistance the Government has given to former Gurkhas who are homeless as a result of recent earthquakes in Nepal.

Mr Desmond Swayne: A Joint DFID and Ministry of Defence (MOD) response was launched immediately in the aftermath of the Nepal earthquakes in April and May 2015. The MOD through the Gurkha Welfare Trust (GWT) supported both immediate and longer term initiatives. The GWT carried out a detailed assessment of the damage to Gurkha communities and provided £1.2 million in emergency aid that included distribution of shelter kits, tarpaulins and corrugated iron sheets in remote areas immediately in the aftermath of the earthquake. In addition, a unit of the Queen’s Gurkha Engineers was deployed to repair and rebuild the homes and communities of approximately 2,200 Gurkha servicemen that were severely damaged by the earthquake. To date, 150 new houses, built to an earthquake resistant design, are under construction and a further 600 houses will be started this year. DFID has been supplying humanitarian assistance to the Gurkha communities hit by the earthquake since April 2015 and continues to do so.The GWT’s commitments for the earthquake response now stand at £19 million over 5 years. The MOD has provided an additional grant of £512,000 to assist the GWT in its on-going response operations. Between 2012-20 DFID has committed £14.19 million to support the GWT’s Gurkha Welfare Scheme, a programme predominantly supporting the Nepali servicemen and their communities, on water and sanitation programmes.

Bangladesh: Vocational Education

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps she is taking to (a) help up-skill and (b) provide technical education for the Bangladeshi workforce.

Mr Desmond Swayne: DFID is supporting the upskilling of the Bangladeshi workforce through several projects in both the informal and formal sectors. Through our support to the Underprivileged Children’s Educational Programme, a local educational institution, nearly 45, 000 children have received general education and over 13, 000 have received technical and vocational training. Of the latter, 90% have been placed in formal employment or become self-employed. The programme focuses on working children in slums who dropped out of school.DFID also launched ‘the Skills and Employment Programme in Bangladesh’ in October 2015. The programme aims to provide private sector training opportunities, with a particular focus on supporting women and disadvantaged populations, in the ready-made garments and construction sectors.

Mental Health

Dr   Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department has taken to promote improvement in standards of mental health globally.

Mr Nick Hurd: DFID’s principal approach is to strengthen health services, improving coverage, access and quality so that services better address all major causes of ill health including mental health. We also support research, together with specific work on mental health in some countries.

West Bank: Housing

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the humanitarian effect of the planning process in Area C of the West Bank.

Mr Desmond Swayne: According to the UN, Palestinians in the OPTs face a range of serious threats including threats to life, destruction of homes and forced displacement. Planning helps stop demolitions and displacement, which have a negative humanitarian impact and continue to undermine development. The UK strongly supports development of Area C and continues to fund the development of Palestinian outline plans to improve communities’ access to services.

Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what representations her Department made at the pre-replenishment meeting of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria in Tokyo on 17 December 2015.

Mr Nick Hurd: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 03 February 2016.The correct answer should have been:

The Secretary of State for International Development has had no discussions on the 1955 tax treaty between the UK and Malawi with the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Issues relating to tax treaties are a matter for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs.The Department’s Director General for Policy and Global Programmes attended the pre-replenishment meeting of the Global Fund in Tokyo, at which he urged all countries to contribute their fair share to the 2017-2019 Global Fund replenishment to support the delivery of the global goals.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Secretary of State for International Development has had no discussions on the 1955 tax treaty between the UK and Malawi with the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Issues relating to tax treaties are a matter for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs.The Department’s Director General for Policy and Global Programmes attended the pre-replenishment meeting of the Global Fund in Tokyo, at which he urged all countries to contribute their fair share to the 2017-2019 Global Fund replenishment to support the delivery of the global goals.

Overseas Aid

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will make an assessment of the implications for her Department's aid policy of the research on global income distribution published by Oxfam on 19 January 2016.

Mr Desmond Swayne: Eradicating extreme poverty is central to DFID’s mission and the Sustainable Development Goals. Oxfam say inequality affects the politics around growth. Our economic development strategy takes account of this by supporting inclusive growth and tackling inequality by creating opportunities, widening access to them (including through education and health), economically empowering women and leaving no-one behind.

Overseas Aid

Wendy Morton: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how she plans to implement the cross-governmental aid strategy.

Justine Greening: The UK aid strategy sets out our strategy to defeat poverty, tackle instability and create prosperity in developing countries. Not only is this the right thing to do; it is also strongly in our national interest. For the first time ever, development is becoming a truly cross-Government agenda and I am working with my colleagues to deliver that.

Syria: International Assistance

Craig Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what the Government's objectives are for the Syria Donors Conference on 4 February 2016.

Justine Greening: We want the Conference to raise significant new funding to help those affected by the crisis, both to support immediate and longer term humanitarian needs but also jobs and getting Syrian refugee children into school. The Conference also aims to reaffirm the international community’s commitment to protect civilians from harm and the need for unfettered, impartial humanitarian access inside Syria.

Refugees: Children

Margaret Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what humanitarian support the Government is providing for refugee children.

Justine Greening: Syria is the world’s biggest humanitarian crisis. The UK has pledged over £1.1 billion and is meeting emergency needs of children and supporting them to stay closer to home. At tomorrow’s Syria Conference I expect leaders will agree a new goal that all refugee children from Syria and affected host country children are in education in 2016/17. Last week, my Department also announced a new £10 million fund to help meet the needs of refugee children in Europe and the Balkans.

Malawi: Overseas Aid

Richard  Arkless: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether she has had discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the implications for aid of the 1955 tax treaty between the UK and Malawi.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Secretary of State for International Development has had no discussions on the 1955 tax treaty between the UK and Malawi with the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Issues relating to tax treaties are a matter for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs.

Developing Countries: Agriculture

Danny Kinahan: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department has taken to develop agriculture education links with countries that would benefit from UK expertise.

Mr Desmond Swayne: The Department for International Development has supported Partnership Projects covering agriculture and veterinary sciences, across 17 developing countries linking UK Universities and developing country institutions. We have funded research programmes for collaborative projects between UK researchers and partners in Africa and Asia at postgraduate level.

Department for Education

Schools: Property Transfer

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has been approached by (a) Stockport local authority, (b) Tameside local authority and (c) the Greater Manchester combined authority to approve the re-designation of school land for housing development in the last three years.

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what factors she takes into account when considering a request from a local authority to dispose of school sites for redevelopment for new housing.

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has been approached by (a) Stockport local authority, (b) Tameside local authority and (c) Greater Manchester combined authority to approve the removal of protected school land for development under Schedule 14 of the Education Act 2011 in the last three years.

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what factors she takes into account in considering a request from a local authority to dispose of school sites under Schedule 14 of the Education Act 2011.

Edward Timpson: Since January 2013, the Secretary of State for Education has received:1 application from Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council, this is currently being considered.4 applications from Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council, all have been approved.19 applications from the Greater Manchester combined authority, 1 is being considered and the other 18 have been approved.These figures include applications in those local authorities relating to land held by Academy Trusts under a lease from the local authority.The Education Act 2011 requires that the Secretary of State must give consent prior to the disposal of land which has been used for any school or academy in the last eight years. Secretary of State consent is also required under section 77 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 where local authorities wish to dispose of playing field land that has been used by a school in the last ten years. A key consideration for the government is whether the land proposed for disposal could be suitable for use by a new school.There are a range of reasons for these disposals. Some disposals are leases from the academy trustees back to the local authority, which allow a children’s centre on site to continue or which provide land for another school. A substantial number of consents refer to local authority maintained school sites for outright disposals where the school has closed or relocated to a new build site.

Schools: Standards

Craig Whittaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many pupils in England have been taught in schools rated as outstanding or good by Ofsted in each of the last ten years.

Nick Gibb: The table below shows the number of children who attended schools in England which were judged good or outstanding as at 31 August each year from 2010.Number of children who attended schools rated as good or outstanding, 2010 to 2015:Ofsted inspections as at 31 AugustNumber of pupils attending schools rated as good or outstanding[1]20104,855,33620115,000,15120125,017,51820135,701,50020145,889,15320156,212,477Source: Ofsted Data View tool[1] Data is based on the most recent section 5 (including section 8 deemed 5) Ofsted inspection of all open schools (primary, secondary, special, nursery and pupil referral unit) as at 31 August from 2010 to 2015.

E-ACT Academies

Jim McMahon: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will take steps to prevent the E-ACT Academy chain from dismissing community governors from its school governing bodies.

Edward Timpson: In a Multi-Academy Trust (MAT), individual academies are all under the control of the trust board, as the legal entity. A trust is allowed to exercise its choice about whether and how to construct its local governing bodies for each academy. The composition of those boards and the range of functions delegated to any such boards, are all a matter for the board to determine. In all cases the board remains accountable for all of the academies in the MAT. We expect Government bodies to drive strong governance so that standards remain high. We trust these boards to decide on the most appropriate arrangements for their trust. They may choose to delegate duties to local governing bodies, but trustees maintain overall responsibility. E-ACT has reviewed its governance arrangements and is planning to change its regional and local governance structure.The Secretary of State can intervene where a trust is in breach of its funding agreement due to a serious breakdown in governance.Fewer, higher quality and more highly skilled boards overseeing groups of schools is central to the Government’s strategy for improving the quality of school governance. It is also the key to schools realising a wide range of other educational and financial benefits.

Ofsted: Consultants

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many people were hired by Ofsted on a consultancy basis in 2015; and what the overall cost was of their employment.

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many people were employed by Ofsted on short-term contracts in 2015.

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many permanent employees Ofsted has; and how many such employees receive salaries in excess of £100,000 per annum.

Nick Gibb: These are matters for Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Sir Michael Wilshaw. I have asked him to write to you and a copy of his reply will be placed in the House Libraries.

Offences against Children

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children have died as a result of abuse or neglect in each of the last 10 years.

Edward Timpson: The death of any child is a tragedy. We want all children at risk of abuse or neglect to be identified early, to have timely and proportionate assessments of their individual needs, and to have the right services provided at the right time.The death of each child must be reviewed and the Department collects information on the outcomes of these reviews. Since 2010-11, the Department has published annual statistics on the numbers of reviews of child deaths and the numbers of reviews where the category of death was abuse or neglect. In 2010-11, there were 47 reviews completed of deaths of children due to abuse or neglect; 43 in 2011-12; 46 in 2012-13; 62 in 2013-14; and 60 in 2014-15.

Arts: English Baccalaureate

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of the lack of creative subjects in the Ebac on the creative sector of the economy.

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of the introduction  of the Ebac on the take-up of creative subjects by pupils.

Nick Gibb: This Government’s aim is to have at least 90% of pupils taking GCSEs from the English Baccalaureate subjects of English, maths, science, humanities and languages.These subjects are part of a broad and balanced curriculum. The EBacc has been designed to be limited in its size in order to provide a rigorous academic core whilst leaving space in the curriculum for pupils to study other subjects of their choice, including creative subjects. A good foundation in the EBacc subjects will help students keep their options open for work and further study.On 3 November 2015 the Secretary of State for Education launched a public consultation seeking views on the government’s proposals for the implementation of the English Baccalaureate[1]. The consultation closed on 29 January 2016 and the government response will be published in the spring.[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/implementing-the-english-baccalaureate

Languages: Education

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to encourage the teaching and examination of GCSE and A-level (a) Gujarati and (b) Hindi; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: Awarding organisations currently offer GCSEs and A levels in a range of languages, which includes Gujarati. Hindi is not currently offered. The Department is working with awarding organisations, and Ofqual, to consider how best to enable the current range of languages to be maintained at GCSE and A level in future years.

Gujarati: Education

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 7 January 2016 to Question 20756, whether a response from the Chief Regulator of the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation has been received by her Department; and when that response will be placed in the Library.

Nick Gibb: The Department for Education has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Ministry of Justice

Offences against Children

Mr Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were (a) charged with and (b) convicted of paying for the sexual services of a child under the Sexual Offences Act 2003 in each calendar year since 2010.

Mike Penning: The number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates’ courts and found guilty at all courts of offences of paying for the sexual services of a child, under section 47 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003, in England and Wales from 2010 to 2014, can be viewed in the table.Charging data is not held by the Ministry of Justice.Court proceedings data for 2015 are planned for publication in May 2016.Defendants proceeded against at magistrates' court, found guilty and sentenced at all courts for offences relating to paying for sexual services of a child, under the Sexual Offences Act 2003, England & Wales, 2010 to 2014(1)(2)(3)Offence Outcome20102011201220132014Offences relating to paying for sexual services(4) Proceeded against310646Found Guilty351653(-) = Nil   (1) The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.(2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.(3) The number of defendants found guilty in a particular year may exceed the number proceeded against as the proceedings in the magistrates' court took place in an earlier year and the defendants were found guilty at the Crown Court in the following year; or the defendants were found guilty of a different offence to that for which they were originally proceeded against.(4) Includes the following offences:   Paying for sex with a female child under 16 - no penetration Paying for sex with a male child under 16 - no penetration Paying for sex with a female child under 13 - penetration Paying for sex with a male child under 16 - penetration Paying for sex with a female child under 16 - penetration Paying for sex with a female child 16 or 17  Paying for sex with a male child 16 or 17   Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services - Ministry of Justice. Ref: PQC 24517

Miscarriages of Justice: Prisoners' Release

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been released from custodial sentences as a result of wrongful convictions in each of the last 10 years.

Mike Penning: The Ministry of Justice does not hold the number of people released from custodial sentences as a result of wrongful convictions in England and Wales. Obtaining this information would incur disproportionate cost.

Prisons: Dogs

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many trained dogs have been injured while working in prisons in each of the last five years.

Andrew Selous: Information relating to injuries sustained by dogs working in prisons is not centrally collated and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Home Office: Legal Costs

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much his Department has paid in legal fees in relation to criminal legal aid contracts.

Mr Shailesh Vara: To the end of December 2015, the Legal Aid Agency incurred a total of £141,519 in relation to external legal fees associated with the criminal legal aid contracts. The external legal advice assisted the GLD commercial team with the drafting of the 2015 Own Client and 2015 Duty Provider contracts. It is not possible to distinguish the cost of work relating to the criminal legal aid contracts incurred by the Agency’s internal legal teams from other work undertaken.

Prisons: Discipline

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the most commonly recorded item in the Incident Report System was in each prison; and how many times each such item was recorded in the prison concerned in the 12 months for which figures are available.

Andrew Selous: Other than for a few specific items such as firearms, finds of illicit items within prisons are recorded under the miscellaneous category on the NOMS Incident Reporting System. To extract the information requested could only be achieved at disproportionate cost by examining some 10,000 individual records in this category.

Prisons: Dogs

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 14 January 2016 to Question 21315, how many specially-trained dogs are used by his Department to detect illicit alcohol.

Andrew Selous: We have trained more than 500 dogs to search prisoners, visitors, prison perimeters and suspicious packages for illicit items such as drugs, weapons, alcohol and mobile phones. As part of that, we have trained more than 300 sniffer dogs to detect new psychoactive substances. Many dogs are trained to detect a range of contraband. As at 31 December 2015, 44 dogs had been licensed to detect alcohol.

Leader of the House

Opening of Parliament

Julie Cooper: To ask the Leader of the House, what date is planned for the State Opening of Parliament in 2016.

Chris Grayling: The date for the next State Opening of Parliament will be announced by Written Statement in the usual way.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Tourism

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what funding streams his Department has for the promotion of tourism to UK regions; and what proportion of those funds was spent on each region in each of the last three years.

David Evennett: DCMS funds the promotion of tourism to regions of the UK through the activities of its Arms Length Body, the British Tourist Authority, which trades as both VisitEngland and VisitBritain. In the recent Spending Review, it was announced that grant-in-aid to both VisitEngland and VisitBritain would remain stable to 2020. The Chancellor also announced a new £40m Discover England fund, which will be open to all regions of England. In addition, the GREAT campaign funds the promotion of Britain: its nations and regions, in overseas markets. Over the past three years, there have been a number of funding streams for specific regions, including the Northern and South West Tourism Growth Funds in 2015/16 and the Regional Growth Fund 'Growing Tourism Locally' programme, which ran for three years from 2012-15. As many projects and campaigns span the whole of England or the UK, investment figures cannot be divided by region.

Governance and Regulation of the BBC Independent Review

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when he expects the Clementi review into governance of the BBC to be published.

Mr Edward Vaizey: We expect the independent review of the governance and regulation of the BBC to conclude shortly, and we will publish it in due course.

Broadband

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when his Department will launch its consultation on the universal service obligation on superfast broadband; and for how long that consultation will be open.

Mr Edward Vaizey: We intend to launch our consultation on proposals to implement a new broadband Universal Service Obligation in early 2016. The duration of the consultation will be proportionate to the issues under consideration, as advised by the Cabinet Office guidelines, which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/492132/20160111_Consultation_principles_final.pdf

Culture: Finance

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many meetings Ministers and civil servants in his Department have had with Ministers and civil servants in the Department for Communities and Local Government on the impact of the local government financial settlement on local arts and culture organisations and projects.

Mr Edward Vaizey: DCMS and CLG Ministers and officials regularly discuss matters of shared interest including arts, culture and public libraries.

Broadband

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how his Department will measure the progress of the roll-out of the broadband universal service obligation.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Once the new broadband USO is in place, Ofcom will monitor its implementation and feedback progress to Government.

Broadband

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many (a) kilometres of duct and (b) poles have been installed with financial support from BDUK.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Openreach predominately uses existing duct and pole infrastructure in BDUK project areas, but where state funded infrastructure has been used, they report it on their website at:  https://www.openreach.co.uk/orpg/home/products/ductandpolesharing/contracts/contracts/downloads/State_Aided_Infrastruture_One_Truth.xlsx

Gaming Machines

Sir David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when he next plans a review of gaming machine stakes and prizes.

Sir David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what his policy is on reducing the stake on Fixed Odds Betting Terminals; and if he will make a statement.

David Evennett: On 21 January the Government published its evaluation of the £50 regulations introduced in April 2015. You can find it here:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/493714/Evaluation_of_Gaming_Machine__Circumstances_of_Use___Amendment__Regulations_2015.pdf The evaluation indicates that a large proportion of players of FOBTs may now be making a more conscious choice to control their playing behaviour and their stake level. We will now consider the findings of the evaluation before deciding if there is a need for further action.

Department for Work and Pensions

Work Capability Assessment: Self-harm

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what reasons different criteria apply in the assessment of risk of self-harm or suicide to men and women in his Department's guidance on work capability assessments.

Priti Patel: The guidance on work capability assessments no longer makes a distinction between men and women.

Welfare State: Peterborough

Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what progress his Department is making in reducing welfare dependency and increasing wages in Peterborough; and if he will make a statement.

Priti Patel: The government is making good progress in moving to a higher wage, lower tax, lower welfare economy. In Peterborough the number of people claiming one of the main out-of-work benefits has fallen by over 3,400 (21%) since 2010. Average gross weekly earnings in Peterborough have risen by 12% since 2010, to £487 per week.

Supported Housing: Housing Benefit

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the postponement of the introduction of the one per cent rent reduction for supported housing requires the postponement of the introduction of the local housing allowance cap for residents living in supported housing.

Justin Tomlinson: We value the work of the supported housing sector extremely highly and are working closely with them to ensure they are supported as effectively as possible. As part of this we have commissioned an evidence review of supported housing. The results of this research will determine our future policy development and any appropriate exemptions.

Supported Housing: Housing Benefit

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether residents living in supported housing will be exempt from the local housing allowance cap.

Justin Tomlinson: We value the work of the supported housing sector extremely highly and are working closely with them to ensure they are supported as effectively as possible.   As part of this, we have commissioned an evidence review of supported housing.   The results of this research will determine any appropriate exemptions.

Supported Housing: Housing Benefit

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of people who may no longer be able to remain in supported housing after introduction of the proposed cap on housing benefit at the rate of local housing allowance.

Justin Tomlinson: Further information is not available.We value the work of the supported housing sector extremely highly and are working closely with them to ensure that they are supported as effectively as possible in advance of the policy taking effect.As part of this we have commissioned an evidence review of supported housing.The results of this research will determine our f appropriate exemptions. We are also providing Local Authorities with £870 million over the course of this parliament to ensure vulnerable people are protected.

Supported Housing: Housing Benefit

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people in (a) Warrington and (b) Warrington North constituency in supported housing are in receipt of housing benefit.

Justin Tomlinson: This information is not available.

Department for Work and Pensions: ICT

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what his Department's plans are for the procurement of IT and digital services beyond the end dates of its current contracts.

Justin Tomlinson: The Department anticipates a shift in the way in which citizens will engage with the Department - with greater digital interaction in the future. Digital Technology, Data and Security capabilities are a key enabler of this shift. The department initiates on an ongoing basis a number of procurement exercises using open competitions under the EU Procurement Directives and call-off competitions under Government Frameworks.

Social Security Benefits: Carer's Allowance

Ms Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many households will be exempted from the household benefit cap in 2015-16 due to the claimant being in receipt of carer's allowance (a) in total and (b) in each English local authority.

Justin Tomlinson: In 2015-16 no households will be exempt from the benefit cap due to a claimant being in receipt of Carer’s Allowance. The exemption from the benefit cap for those in receipt of Carer’s Allowance will be introduced later this year, subject to Parliamentary approval.

Ministry of Defence

AWE: Planning Permission

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the timetable is for the submission of his Department's proposed planning application for Atomic Weapons Establishment (a) Aldermaston and (b) Burghfield.

Michael Fallon: Following is the timetable for the submission of proposed planning applications for the Atomic Weapons Establishment at the Aldermaston and Burghfield sites.The table excludes minor planning applications for amendments to current facilities and minor works. Project descriptionSiteTiming of proposed planning applicationNNS Engineering FacilityAldermaston2016 - 2018Training AcademyAldermaston2017 - 2019Science, Engineering and Technology FacilityAldermaston2017 - 2019Small scale formulationsAldermastonBeyond 2018Storage FacilityAldermastonBeyond 2018Chemical processingBurghfieldBeyond 2018Emergency response capability facility training extensionBurghfieldBeyond 2018Combined non metallurgy and material scienceBurghfieldBeyond 2018

AWE Burghfield

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he expects the Mensa warhead assembly and disassembly facility at the Atomic Weapons Establishment Burghfield to begin operation.

Michael Fallon: Project Mensa was approved in May 2011 with an in-service date between 2016 and 2020.

HMS Ocean: Deployment

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the total crew complement of HMS Ocean was on its most recent deployment; of what the Embarked Military Forces she carried consisted; and how many helicopters of which type she carried.

Penny Mordaunt: Ships' complements are not fixed; they vary, even across a class, depending on equipment fits and in response to specific tasking. HMS OCEAN has a complement of 380 when in her normal operating role; however, this would have varied during her deployment on COUGAR 15 as personnel embarked and disembarked dependent on the activity. The Embarked Military Force (Royal Marines and Aviation Group personnel) was in the region of 620. Similarly, the number and type of helicopters embarked varied depending on the activity. At points during the deployment, HMS OCEAN carried the following helicopters: Chinook CH472Apache4Wildcat4Merlin Mk22Osprey MV 22 (US Marine Corps)3

Defence Equipment: Decommissioning

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which assets his Department plans to decommission over the next 12 months.

Mr Philip Dunne: The Ministry of Defence manages a wide range of assets to support the UK Armed Forces. A list of equipment due to be decommissioned in the next 12 months is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.However, the following major equipment platforms are planned to be taken out of service in 2016:Sea King Mk3, 3a, 4 and 5;RFA Black Rover - Royal Fleet Auxiliary Fleet Support Tanker.

Trident Missiles: Costs

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the costs are of the Mk4A Trident warhead modification programme for each year of the Nuclear Warhead Capability Sustainment Programme.

Michael Fallon: The overall cost to the UK of procuring the Mk4A component was an element of the estimated future costs of the Atomic Weapons Establishment as set out in chapter five of the White Paper 'The Future of the United Kingdom's Nuclear Deterrent' (Cmd 6994), published in December 2006.Further details on the costs of the Mk4A programme are being withheld for the purpose of safeguarding national security.

Military Aircraft

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) Tornado and (b) Typhoon aircraft are (i) in the Forward Available Fleet, (ii) in the Sustainment Fleet and (iii) awaiting decommissioning or disposal.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many and what proportion of (a) Tornado and (b) Typhoon aircraft in the Sustainment Fleet are (i) undergoing planned maintenance, (ii) undergoing upgrade work and (iii) held in temporary storage.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many and what proportion of (a) Tornado and (b) Typhoon aircraft in the Forward Available Fleet are classed as short term unserviceable as a result of undergoing (i) short term maintenance and (ii) other short term works.

Mr Philip Dunne: The information requested is detailed in the attached table. The Forward Available Fleet comprises aircraft which are serviceable and those which are short-term unserviceable. Short-term unserviceable aircraft are undergoing minor works, forward maintenance or any other rectification or technical inspection work that can arise on a day-to-day basis. Dependant on the nature of the work, aircraft may be designated as requiring either 'short-term maintenance' or 'short-term works'. The Sustainment Fleet numbers represent those aircraft in the Depth Fleet, which comprises aircraft which are undergoing planned depth maintenance or upgrade programmes. Decommissioning and disposal are part of the same process and are therefore grouped together.



Tornado and Typhoon Attachment Table.
(Word Document, 28.59 KB)

Military Aircraft: Repairs and Maintenance

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much has been spent on (a) maintenance of and (b) upgrade works for (i) Tornado, (ii) Typhoon and (iii) Reaper drones in each of the last six years.

Mr Philip Dunne: The costs of maintenance and capability upgrades for Tornado, Typhoon and the Reaper Unmanned Air System, in each of the last six financial years, are shown in the table below.  Financial year (£ million) 2009-102010-112011-122012-132013-142014-15Tornado: capability upgrade work87.269.333.328.958.245.6Tornado: maintenance311.0303.8369.7344.2247.7184.9Typhoon: capability upgrade work000066.8178.4Typhoon: maintenance392.7475.3499.6294.8313.1460.2Reaper: maintenance4.84.84.89.827.123.5Reaper: capability upgrade work0.20.40.40.61.31.3Note: Costs for all platforms are extracted from the equipment support programme budget.

Tornado Aircraft: Safety Measures

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Tornado aircraft are fitted with the Honeywell Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System II; and how many are currently being fitted with that system.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he expects the process of fitting Tornado aircraft with the Honeywell Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System II to be completed.

Mr Philip Dunne: As at 28 January 2016, 43 Tornado GR4 aircraft had been fitted with a Traffic Collision Avoidance System capability. A total of 61 Tornado GR4 aircraft will be fitted with this capability by the end of 2016, when the project is planned to be completed. It should be noted that as far as we are aware, this is the first time ever a Collision Avoidance System has been fitted to a combat fast jet, anywhere in the world.

Russia: National Security

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to mitigate against (a) high level missile and (b) cyber threats from Russia.

Penny Mordaunt: The UK employs a range of capabilities to deter and defend against the threats emanating from potential adversaries; this includes the potential threat from ballistic missiles.The cyber threat is continually changing in scope and complexity, and we continually review and adjust our security. Our approach spans technical, organisational, policy, procedural and physical measures.

Ministry of Defence Police: Clyde Naval Base

Brendan O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether overtime for Ministry of Defence Police stationed at HM Naval Base Clyde is (a) voluntary or (b) compulsory.

Mark Lancaster: All Ministry of Defence Police officers can be asked to work beyond their normal conditioned hours if there is an unavoidable operational need to do so. Where there is a requirement to cover essential duties by the use of overtime working, volunteers are sought in the first instance in order to minimise the need for compulsory overtime working

Ministry of Defence Police: Staff

Brendan O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many additional Ministry of Defence Police Officers will be required to operate at full capacity in (a) 2015-16, (b) 2016-17, (c) 2017-18, (d) 2018-19 and (e) 2019-20 as a consequence of the 2015 Strategic Defence and Security Review.

Mark Lancaster: As part of the 2015 Strategic Defence and Security Review we are reviewing a series of options that are expected to change the way we provide our policing and guarding at some sites. Work is under way to assess the feasibility and implication of these options. Estimates of numbers of total Ministry of Defence Police officers were provided in my answer to Question 18989 from the hon. Member for North Durham (Mr Kevan Jones MP) on 10 December 2015.



Ministry of Defence Police
(Word Document, 15.79 KB)

Ministry of Defence Police: Staff

Brendan O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to address the shortfall in personnel numbers within the Ministry of Defence Police; and when his Department plans to take such steps.

Mark Lancaster: The Ministry of Defence Police commenced a recruitment programme to bring new officers into the Force in late 2013. The Force is currently planning to recruit around 200 new officers during financial year 2016-17.

Ministry of Defence Police: Working Hours

Brendan O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what definition his Department use of the term exigency of duty.

Mark Lancaster: The Ministry of Defence Police policy on overtime working states that:"Exigencies of Duty should be interpreted as relating to situations where there is an unavoidable operational need, which necessitates a change of rostered duties".

Ministry of Defence Police: Staff

Brendan O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what forecast he has made of the number of Ministry of Defence Police Officers employed by his Department in each year from 2015-16 to 2019-20.

Mark Lancaster: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 10 December 2015 to Question 18989 to the hon. Member for North Durham, ( Mr Kevan Jones MP).



Ministry of Defence Police
(Word Document, 15.79 KB)

Royal Naval Reserve: Recruitment

Craig Whittaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many people applied to join the Royal Navy Reserve in each of the last 10 years; and how many such applicants were successful.

Mr Julian Brazier: The Maritime Reserve (MR) is a vital component of the Naval Service’s capability and consists of the Royal Naval Reserve and Royal Marines Reserve. Defence Statistics publish information on a regular basis showing intake figures for the Armed Forces, including Regular Naval Service personnel. The most recent information is contained in 'UK Armed Forces Monthly Service Personnel Statistics: December 2015' and associated tables, which is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/uk-armed-forces-monthly-service-personnel-statistics-index. UK Armed Forces Monthly Service Personnel Statistics: 1 January 2016 will be published on 11 February 2016. The following table represents the number of applications and intake to the MR for the period for which information is available: Financial Year2013-142014-15April 2015 to September 2015Applications to MR1,1801,280900MR New Entrant Intake510620390  Notes: 1. Source: Defence Statistics (Navy). 2. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 10 in accordance with the Defence Statistics rounding policy. 3. Information prior to Financial Year 2013-14 is not held centrally. 4. New Entrants reflect any intake into the untrained strength, and comprise new recruits, ex-Regulars and Reserve re-joiners who required training. 5. Figures relate to the number of applications received and not the number of applicants, since one applicant may make several applications. 6. The number of applications received does not necessarily directly relate to the intake figures in the same year since people may withdraw their applications for a number of reasons and the time between an application being received and an individual successfully being taken onto untrained strength will vary.

Royal Naval Reserve: Recruitment

Craig Whittaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the target for new recruits to the Royal Navy Reserve has been met in each of the last 10 years.

Mr Julian Brazier: The Maritime Reserve (MR) is a vital component of the Naval Service's capability and consists of the Royal Naval Reserve and Royal Marines Reserve.Centrally held data for the MR recruitment targets does not go back 10 years. Since the Future Reserve 2020 Programme was established in July 2012 the MR have achieved their targets each year.

Ministry of Defence Police: Staff

Brendan O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether there is a shortfall in the number of Ministry of Defence Police Officers; and what provision there is for tasking such officers beyond their contracted hours of work.

Mark Lancaster: The Ministry of Defence Police (MDP) currently has a number of vacancies within the Force. Where there is a shortfall in numbers at an MDP station the use of overtime working may be authorised in order to cover essential duties. Volunteers to work additional hours are sought in the first instance, but officers may be directed to work additional hours if insufficient volunteers are available.

Ministry of Defence Police: Overtime

Brendan O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether Ministry of Defence Police Officers are subject to disciplinary or unsatisfactory performance procedures in the event that they are unable to undertake additional work in excess of contractual hours; and what plans he has to review that policy.

Mark Lancaster: In line with the rest of the police service, Ministry of Defence Police officers may be subject to disciplinary action if they fail to attend for duty when directed to do so. There are no plans to review this policy.

Military Alliances: South East Asia

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the UK's naval obligations are under the Five Powers Agreement.

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the obligations are on the UK under the provisions of the Five Power Defence arrangements.

Mr Julian Brazier: Under the Five Power Defence Arrangements, the five powers (Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Singapore and the UK) undertook to consult "immediately" in the event or threat of an armed attack on Malaysia or Singapore for the purpose of deciding what measures should be taken jointly or separately in response. There is no specific commitment to intervene militarily.

Type 45 Destroyers: Engines

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what alterations were made to the pulsion system of the Type 45 destroyer between the launch of the first and the sixth such destroyers.

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when defects were first noted in the pulsion system of the Type 45 destroyer.

Mr Philip Dunne: The decision to procure the Rolls Royce WR21 was taken in November 2000 by the then Defence Secretary, Geoff Hoon. In announcing the decision, he accepted this decision "presents a greater degree of risk to the programme." Following that decision a number of issues with the Type 45 Integrated Electrical Propulsion (IEP) system were identified when the First of Class, HMS Daring was launched in 2006. From 2006 to the launch of the sixth and final Type 45 in October 2010, the Type 45 Destroyer class had around fifty minor design alterations directly attributable to the development of the Type 45 IEP system identified. The subsequent implementation process for acceptance of these alterations is necessarily rigorous to maintain safety and system design intent. As a result, the majority of Type 45 IEP alterations were implemented after the launch of the last of class. A report was commissioned in 2011 to examine the reliability of the power and propulsion system in greater detail. This work was re-assessed in 2013 to examine the extent to which the issues identified in the report had been dealt with, (by changes to operating procedures and training) and establish which were not simply the problems associated with a new complex system.   As part of the Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015 the Government is committed to improving the Type 45's power and propulsion system an ongoing Equipment Improvement Plan is successfully making further alterations to the existing power and propulsion system. Over the last two years, Type 45 Destroyers have been routinely deployed to the Gulf to maintain a destroyer presence in the region, including HMS Defender's support to US Carrier operations against Daesh.

Department for Communities and Local Government

Public Transport: North East

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 14 December 2015 to Question 19988, what progress  he has made on finalising monitoring arrangements; and if he will support monitoring of the use of public transport and investment in the North East's bus and rail networks as part of those arrangements.

James Wharton: The Government is working with the North East Combined Authority on the implementation plan for its devolution deal, which will cover monitoring arrangements. The devolution deal will create an elected mayor, who will be directly accountable to local people and will have powers over transport among other things. It is for the future mayor to decide how to monitor transport policy, and for local people to hold the mayor and the Combined Authority to account.

Local Government Finance: Calderdale

Craig Whittaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what representations he has received from Calderdale Council since 2010 on the level of local authority funding from central Government.

Craig Whittaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what representations he has received from Calderdale Council since 2010 on the level of the Revenue Support Grant.

Mr Marcus Jones: Calderdale Council have submitted a representation each year since 2010 as part of the annual consultation on the local government finance settlement.The annual local government finance settlement sets out details of central government funding for local authorities, including Revenue Support Grant, as well as considering councils' locally raised funds, and represents the main funding source for local authorities.

Mortgages

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what progress his Department is making on encouraging buy-to-let mortgage lenders to allow longer tenancies in their terms and conditions.

Brandon Lewis: The Government supports longer tenancies, and promotes them through its Model Tenancy Agreement. We have continued to encourage mortgage lenders to permit family friendly tenancies, and the majority have now changed their policies, and permit tenancies of up to two to three years.A letter was sent to the Council for Mortgage Lenders on this subject in January 2016, urging them to encourage those lenders who have not changed their policies to do so, and to encourage lenders to promote the benefits of the Model Tenancy Agreement to their landlord customers.

Private Rented Housing: Construction

Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of round 2 of the Build to Rent scheme in delivering new homes; and if he will make a statement.

Brandon Lewis: The Build-to-Rent programme has helped to catalyse funding from other sources. Developers are now proceeding with schemes that will deliver over 3,000 homes using alternative finance after having originally made an application to the Fund.

Council Tax

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will publish the distributional analysis of the introduction of the two per cent social care precept.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Government announced on 17 December 2015, Official Report, Column 2238-2241, that local authorities with social care responsibilities will be able to increase their council tax by up to 2% above the core referendum principle of 2%. This could raise up to £2 billion by 2019/20. We set out a breakdown by local authority as part of the announcement which can be viewed at the following link or in the attached document:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/486708/Core_spending_power_supporting_information.xlsx

Greater Manchester Combined Authority

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what plans he has for call-in and scrutiny arrangements for the work of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority.

James Wharton: I refer the hon. member to my answer of 19 January, PQ 921796 and would add that the Cities and Local Government Devolution Bill received Royal Assent on 28 January.The provisions of that Act, including those on overview and scrutiny, are now in force for the purposes of making secondary legislation and for all other purposes will come into force two months after Royal Assent. My rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (Greg Clark) intends to exercise his powers to make further provision about the membership and operation of overview and scrutiny committees as soon as practicable.

Funerals

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what the total annual costs to local authorities were for public health funerals in each year between 2010 and 2015.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Department for Communities and Local Government does not collect the information requested. Figures on local authority expenditure on, and income from, the provision of cemetery, cremation and mortuary services, including closed churchyards and post-mortem services within mortuaries, are collected on the Revenue Outturn form and are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/local-authority-revenue-expenditure-and-financing-england-2014-to-2015-individual-local-authority-data-outturn

HM Treasury

Welfare Tax Credits

Frank Field: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many applications for mandatory reconsideration of a tax credits decision have been made to Concentrix in each month since April 2014.

Frank Field: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many applications for mandatory reconsideration of a tax credits decision are awaiting determination by Concentrix.

Frank Field: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what is the average length of time taken by Concentrix to determine applications for mandatory reconsideration of a tax credits decision.

Mr David Gauke: The number of requests for mandatory reconsideration of a decision about a tax credits award that Concentrix have received since the commencement of their contract with HM Revenue and Customs in November 2014 is as follows: MonthNumber of MRsNovember 20140December 20142January 20156February 201538March 201529April 2015137May 2015100June 201545July 201571August 2015108September 20151221October 2015925November 2015871December 20152371 The total is about 1.6% of all decisions Concentrix made in the same period. As of 15 January 2016, there are 566 mandatory reconsiderations in progress that have been opened and Concentrix are waiting for customers to provide further evidence. Concentrix have 30 further mandatory reconsiderations that are awaiting determination. The average length of time taken between Concentrix starting to work a mandatory reconsideration and making a decision is 24 days. This includes the time needed for customers to provide any further evidence.

Illegal Money Lending Team

Richard Burden: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the oral Answer from the Prime Minister on 9 December 2015, Official Report, column 982, how the National Illegal Money Lending Team England will be funded; and if he will make a statement.

Harriett Baldwin: To ensure that the perimeter of the consumer credit market is adequately policed, the Government will be introducing an amendment to the Bank of England and Financial Services Bill to provide for illegal money lending teams throughout the UK to in future be funded by a levy on the consumer credit industry, collected by the FCA.

Health Insurance: Taxation

Gareth Thomas: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it his policy not to impose a tax on insurance premiums on health cash plans; and if he will make a statement.

Harriett Baldwin: All insurance premiums, including health cash plans, are exempt from VAT. Long term insurance products, including critical illness cover, life insurance and income protection insurance are exempt from IPT. Insurance Premium Tax is currently paid by insurers on all general insurance premiums. This includes health cash plans and other forms of medical insurance.

Revenue and Customs: Secondment

Bill Wiggin: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, to which (a) government departments, (b) agencies, (c) commercial companies and (d) charities HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) Fast Stream civil servants are (i) attached or (ii) seconded; what the average length of time is for such (A) attachments and (B) secondments; and what assessment HMRC makes of the benefits of those attachments and secondments to its own work and to the tax payer.

Mr David Gauke: Civil Service Resourcing coordinates the Fast Stream for the Civil Service and manages all Fast Streamers on the central corporate schemes. A list of Government departments, Agencies, Arms Length Bodies, NDPB’s, Commercial (private) organisations and charities to which Fast streamers are currently posted to as at January 2016 can be found at Annex A. Fast stream postings in the Civil Service are either 6 or 12 months depending on the timing of the postingThe average length of time for a secondment to an external organisation is 6 months. Civil Service Resourcing assesses the value of these postings and placements to the Civil Service (including HMRC) in the following ways:Individual performance management through postings; mid and end of scheme assessments to track developments against the Fast Stream aims (core skills, competency framework and leadership potential)Posting and secondment evaluation to ensure the effectiveness of each posting in supporting Fast Streamers’ development.Overall assessment via Fast Stream Annual survey to measure ongoing effectiveness of the Fast Stream

Health Insurance: Taxation

Gareth Thomas: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the revenue that will accrue to the Exchequer from the insurance premium tax on health cash plans; and if he will make a statement.

Mr David Gauke: In 2014-15, total Insurance Premium Tax receipts were approximately £3bn. HM Revenue and Customs estimates that £10.9 million in revenue was received from Insurance Premium Tax on health cash plans in 2014-15.

Sanitary Protection: VAT

Paula Sherriff: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 1.144 of the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015, how much of the £15 million annual VAT revenue from female sanitary products has been (a) spent to date and (b) allocated for future spending; by what process the recipients of those funds are determined; and whether he plans a further round of allocations for financial year 2016-17.

Mr David Gauke: Initial donations from the sanitary products VAT women’s charities fund totalling £5 million have been made to support The Eve Appeal, SafeLives and Women’s Aid, and The Haven. Further donations and recipients will be announced at Budget 2016, and at future fiscal events. The £15 million annual fund will continue to run over the course of this Parliament or until the UK can apply a zero rate of VAT on sanitary products. Charities interested in applying should email the Treasury directly at Tampontax.Fund@hmtreasury.gsi.gov.uk stating their interest in the fund, including an overview of the nature of their proposal and the amount they are requesting. Following this they will be given further details of the bidding process and the detailed information required.

Revenue and Customs: Greater Manchester

Jim McMahon: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will publish the value for money review of the relocation of Oldham HM Revenue and Customs Office to Manchester city centre.

Mr David Gauke: The HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) office at Phoenix House, Oldham was announced for closure in February 2008 as part of HMRC’s earlier Regional Review Programme, and was partially vacated in November 2009 with the majority of staff relocating to Manchester and finally closed in May 2014. HMRC has not undertaken a separate value for money review on the closure of the office in Oldham. The Change Programme, of which the Regional Review Programme formed part, has been reviewed by the National Audit Office as part of its role to scrutinise public spending for Parliament to assess value for money. The NAO carried out a specific review on cost reduction within HMRC in 2013. The report can be found on the attached link. https://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/HMRC-reducing-cost-full-report.pdf

Banks: Insolvency

Jim Shannon: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to minimise the risk of future bank failures.

Harriett Baldwin: Since the financial crisis, the government has taken a number of steps to improve the regulation of banks. The Financial Services Act 2012 overhauled the regulatory architecture, putting the Bank of England in charge of prudential supervision, and establishing the Financial Policy Committee to monitor and take action in respect of macroprudential risks. The government has implemented further reforms, including legislating through the Financial Services (Banking Reform) Act 2013 for the “ring-fencing” regime to separate banks’ riskier investment activities from their retail banking activities. The government has implemented the Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive, ensuring the Bank of England has the tools to resolve banks.

Public Sector: Redundancy Pay

Kevin Brennan: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many workers who were transferred from the public sector to the private sector under previous privatisations will be covered by the Government's proposed changes to exit payments in the Enterprise Bill.

Kevin Brennan: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether it is his policy that a lump sum paid by a public sector employer to an employee's pension fund to compensate the scheme for having to pay a reduced pension earlier than expected should be used as part of the calculation for the public sector exit payment cap proposed in the Enterprise Bill.

Kevin Brennan: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether academy schools will be covered under the public sector exit payment cap proposed in the Enterprise Bill.

Kevin Brennan: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will consider allowing public bodies to continue to have the right, under the Local Government Pension scheme, to allow individuals to access an unreduced pension on compassionate grounds under the proposed public sector exit payments cap.

Kevin Brennan: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it his policy that the right of local authorities to have a waiver option on public sector exit payments should be included on the face of the Enterprise Bill.

Kevin Brennan: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether tribunal awards made to employees will be included when calculating the proposed exit payments cap for those workers.

Greg Hands: The Government consulted on implementing a public sector exit payment cap in July 2015. The Government response to this consultation was published on 16 September 2015. This response provides detail on which organisations and types of payments the Government intends to capture within the scope of the public sector exit payment cap. This accords with the Government’s manifesto commitment to end tax payer funded six figure payoffs for public sector workers.The response document can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/464367/Public_sector_exit_payments_response.pdfThe exit payment cap will apply to payments made as a result of an employee leaving their employment. It will not affect any pension a person has earned through their years of service or have any impact on accrued pension rights or pension lump sum entitlements on retirement. It will capture contributions, made by the employer, to fund early access to an unreduced or partially reduced pension. This is because such costs are ultimately funded by the tax payer.The Government has been clear that early retirements relating to ill health are outside the scope of the cap and will not be affected. Additionally, any payments directed by a Court or Tribunal will not be included in the scope of the cap.Exits on compassionate grounds are not such a clearly defined concept as exits related to ill health or redundancy. There will generally be a large degree of employer discretion on the terms of such exits, and on any payments. In these cases there will be discretion available to relax the cap in individual cases, subject to relevant Ministerial or local council approval, as will be set out in further detail in forthcoming Treasury guidance and directions.

Economic Growth: Yorkshire and the Humber

Craig Whittaker: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the projected growth of the economy in Yorkshire and Humber over the course of this Parliament.

Greg Hands: The government does not publish projected growth forecasts for individual regions of the country. However, last year we published our Long Term Economic Plan for Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire where we detailed our ambition for the region to achieve a long term growth rate to at least that of the whole of the UK. This would increase the size of the Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire economies by an extra £13 billion in real terms by 2030, equivalent to over £2,000 per person.

Financial Institutions: Databases

Joan Ryan: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment the Financial Conduct Authority has made of the effectiveness of its regulations to ensure record keeping by banks and other financial institutions are not being (a) deleted, (b) manipulated or (c) altered.

Joan Ryan: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what consideration the Financial Conduct Authority has given to requests from banks to sign a memorandum of understanding to ensure that financial record keeping regulations in the UK are not being breached.

Joan Ryan: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment the Financial Conduct Authority has made of the effectiveness of its regulatory instruments, including enforcement action, in ensuring compliance by banks and other financial institutions regarding record keeping.

Joan Ryan: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what consideration the Financial Conduct Authority has given to ensuring that encryption keys to encrypted record keeping data between banks and financial service messaging platforms are held by a third party.

Joan Ryan: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment the Financial Conduct Authority has made of the implications for its policies of the statement made by the financial service messaging platform Symphony that they offer Guaranteed Data Deletion; and whether this statement complies with financial regulations on record keeping.

Harriett Baldwin: This is a matter for the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which is operationally independent from Government. The question has been passed on to the FCA. The FCA will reply directly to the Rt Hon Joan Ryan MP by letter. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library of the House.

Golf: VAT

Karl McCartney: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department plans to put in place a five per cent rate of VAT to golf participants at proprietary golf facilities.

Mr David Gauke: Fees paid for participation in golf at proprietary facilities are subject to the standard rate of VAT.

Golf: VAT

Karl McCartney: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations his Department has received on allowing a five per cent rate of VAT to golf participants at proprietary golf facilities.

Mr David Gauke: HM Treasury has received representations on applying a five per cent rate of VAT to golf from both the Association of Golf Course Owners, the Reduce VAT in Sport campaign group, the UK Golf Course Owners Association, and England Golf.

Google: Taxation

Jim McMahon: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will publish the legal advice he received prior to the tax settlement with Google.

Mr David Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is responsible for the conduct of tax enquiries. Ministers are not informed of the progress of enquiries and play no part in agreeing the amount of tax to be paid by any taxpayer.

Department for Energy and Climate Change

Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme

Neil Parish: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what recent progress she has made on the implementation of a revised Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme.

Andrea Leadsom: Reform of the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) scheme will take place in two stages. I intend that the first stage of reform will take effect from Spring 2016. We will be consulting on our proposals for the second stage of reform shortly.

Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme: Carbon Emissions

Neil Parish: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment she has made of the effect of the Renewable Heat Incentive on the UK's decarbonisation targets.

Andrea Leadsom: Using less fossil fuel and more renewables to heat our homes and businesses is vital to decarbonising the UK economy. The continued Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) funding (rising to £1.15bn in 2020/21) means that renewable heat will continue to play its part in meeting our binding domestic and international targets on carbon and renewables. We intend to reform the RHI to improve value for money and reduce costs; improve cost control and budget management; and explore the best way to support less able to pay households and owners of large plants. We plan to consult on the changes shortly; this consultation will provide estimates of the reformed RHI’s contribution towards our carbon targets.

Cabinet Office

Government Departments: Plymouth

Oliver Colvile: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much real estate the Government owns in Plymouth.

Matthew Hancock: The Government owns the following properties in Plymouth:Buildings : 8 Freeholds, 21 leaseholds and 8 Private Finance InitiativesLand: 7 freeholds and 4 leaseholdsDetails available at the following website: https://data.gov.uk/dataset/epims.

Voluntary Work: Bolton West

Chris Green: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many young people have taken part in the National Citizen Service in Bolton West constituency.

Chris Green: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many young people in (a) Bolton borough and (b) Wigan borough have taken part in the National Citizen Service.

Mr Rob Wilson: National Citizen Service is the fastest growing youth programme for a century and over 200,000 young people across the UK have already taken part in this life changing opportunity. I am pleased to report that in the local authority areas of Bolton and Wigan, 1,962 and 676 young people have taken part respectively. NCS data is not held on constituency basis.

Freedom of Information Act 2000

Margaret Ferrier: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 9 December 2015 to Question 902477, when he expects the Independent Commission on Freedom of Information to publish its review of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

Matthew Hancock: It is for the independent Commission to determine the timing for submitting its response to Government.

Public Sector: Procurement

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how Government targets for the proportion of business created in supply chains for small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) under public procurement contracts apply to companies subject to mergers, acquisitions or other changes in status that take those companies out of the SME category.

Matthew Hancock: The Government has a target that 33% of central government business, by direct spend and through the supply chain, will go to small and medium businesses by 2020.We assess progress against the overall target on a regular basis, including an assessment of those companies identified as Small or Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs). Where companies no longer meet the statutory definition of an SME at the time of assessment, they are no longer counted.

Public Sector: Procurement

Richard Burden: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what plans he has to bring forward a revised procurement policy note for public authorities; and if he will make a statement.

Matthew Hancock: I refer the Hon Member to the answer I gave to him on 1 February 2016 to UIN: 24475.

Cabinet Office: Soft Drinks

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what discussions (a) the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and (b) the Paymaster General have had with representatives of (i) the Food and Drink Federation, (ii) Coca-Cola, (iii) PepsiCo and (iv) the British Soft Drinks Association.

Matthew Hancock: Details of Ministers' meetings with external organisations are published on a quarterly basis and can be found on Gov.uk.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Neonicotinoids: EU Action

Mrs Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 20 January 2016 to Question 22708, on neonicotinoids: EU action, when she expects the EU Commission to report back its findings; and if she will make a statement.

George Eustice: The European Food Safety Authority has undertaken to complete its assessment for the European Commission by 31 January 2017. The Commission will then consider whether this assessment requires any change to the current restrictions on the use of neonicotinoids. It has not committed to a timescale for this.

Insecticides

Mrs Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the effects of the use of pyrethroids on crops and invertebrates.

George Eustice: Pyrethroids are a group of chemicals used to control insect pests in crops. As with all pesticides, pyrethroids are subject to strict regulation and the use of a pyrethroid is only authorised if it will not harm people, will not give rise to unacceptable risks to the environment and is effective against the target pest. Decisions are made on the basis of assessments of scientific data. This is a two-tier process. The pyrethroid itself is assessed by the European Food Safety Authority. Products containing approved pyrethroids are assessed by the Chemicals Regulation Directorate of the Health and Safety Executive. There are currently several pyrethroids approved at EU level. A number of products containing one or more of these chemicals are authorised in the UK following a satisfactory risk assessment.

Imports: Israel

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether marketing standards conformity certificates issued by Israel covering consignments of fresh fruit and vegetables grown in the occupied Palestinian territories indicate that the products they cover originate in Israel.

George Eustice: The Horticultural Marketing Inspectors have no reason to believe that these certificates do not contain correct information. In 2012, the European Commission announced that their research into Israeli/Palestinian export certificates “did not reveal any evidence of non-conformity regarding the indication of the country of origin”. The Commission also reaffirmed the requirement that the origin needed to be clearly indicated whether it was Israel or an Occupied Territory.

Imports: Fruit and Vegetables

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether it is part of the remit of the Rural Payments Agency to check the conformity to EU marketing standards of consignments of fresh fruit and vegetables entering UK ports.

George Eustice: All fruit and vegetables must meet the EU marketing standards in Regulation 543/2011. These standards require that fruit and vegetables which are intended to be sold fresh to the consumer, may only be marketed if they are of sound, fair and marketable quality and if the country of origin is indicated. Horticultural Marketing Inspectors are part of the Rural Payments Agency and carry out these inspections for Her Majesty’s Government.

Department of Health

Zika Virus

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent discussions he has had with the UN, the EU and authorities in affected countries on (a) the spread of the Zika virus and (b) strategies to prevent the spread of the virus.

Jane Ellison: The Chief Medical Officer, Chief Scientific Adviser and Public Health England (PHE) have had a number of discussions over recent weeks with a wider range of international authorities. The Secretary of State has been briefed about all such discussions.PHE and the National Travel Health Network and Centre have been carefully monitoring the Zika virus outbreak in the Americas since it was first reported in Brazil during May 2015. PHE and the Department attended a European Union Health Security Committee teleconference and PHE has shared a recent European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) risk assessment on Zika virus with colleagues in England, the Devolved Administrations and Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. PHE has been in discussion with infectious disease authorities in Brazil with respect to understanding the epidemiological and clinical picture associated with Zika virus and microcephaly and other congenital malformations.Through the International Health Regulations National Focal Point, PHE has shared information with the European Union, ECDC and other European Member States on the number of cases of Zika virus infection in returning travellers.

Mental Health Services: Ethnic Groups

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure mental health services are accessible to BAME communities.

Alistair Burt: Everyone should be able to access mental health services according to need. However, we know that there are inequalities in the access to mental health services. For example, older adults, men, Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) communities and those who are deaf are not accessing services in the numbers predicted by prevalence studies. The Department continues to work with a range of stakeholders through the Mental Health Equalities Working Group. This includes listening to people with experience of mental health within BAME communities and continuing to make the changes needed to ensure equality throughout mental health services. In July 2014, the Joint Commissioning Panel for Mental Health published guidance for commissioners of mental health services for those from black and minority ethnic communities which is available at: http://www.jcpmh.info/wp-content/uploads/jcpmh-bme-guide.pdf The Department has been working with NHS England and commissioners to disseminate this guidance which describes what ‘good’ mental health services for people from BAME communities look like. The Department commissioned the Mental Health Providers’ Forum and the Race Equality Foundation to gather and review evidence of effective mental health services for BAME groups, which was published last year. Better practice in mental health for black and minority ethnic communities found that organisations that were successful in providing mental health services that meet the needs of BAME groups had developed local community-based approaches to service delivery which addressed cultural and linguistic differences and sought to actively engage hard to reach groups. One of the key priorities of the work in updating the Mental Health Act 1983 Code of Practice, which was published in January 2015, was to eliminate discrimination, including for people from BAME communities. The Department’s published Equality Analysis Equality for all: Mental Health Act 1983: Code of Practice sets out a range of additional guidance that has been included aiming to address concerns raised by BAME stakeholders and others. I will be speaking with a range of stakeholders this spring to look at further ways in which we can address inequalities in mental health outcomes and access to services for people from BAME groups.

Zika Virus: Disease Control

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to prevent the spread of the Zika virus in the UK.

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to prevent the spread of the Zika virus to the UK.

Jane Ellison: Public Health England (PHE) and the National Travel Health Network and Centre (NaTHNaC) have been carefully monitoring the Zika virus outbreak in the Americas since it was first reported in Brazil during May 2015. PHE has reviewed evidence on the transmission of Zika virus and PHE mosquito experts have provided advice to Government and the public that neither the main vector of Zika virus Aedes aegypti, nor other species of Aedes mosquitoes, including Aedes albopictus, that may have the potential to transmit this virus, are established in the United Kingdom. The risk to the UK population is related to travel to countries where Zika virus outbreaks are currently ongoing, and NaTHNaC and PHE have published updated advice for travellers to South and Central America and the Caribbean, including specific advice for pregnant women. The risk of onward spread within the UK is very low and PHE has again provided this advice to government, and the public. PHE has also been working with appropriate professional groups to develop information and guidance on Zika for clinicians. This advice can be accessed through the PHE website and has been cascaded by organisations such as the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. Together with the Royal College of General Practitioners PHE has developed guidance specifically targeted at primary care which will be available shortly. PHE has also produced regular briefing notes for local health protection teams who have been asked to share this with the local National Health Service.

NHS: Research

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what proportion of the NHS' budget is spent on research and campaigns on (a) gender-specific cancers and (b) fertility treatment.

George Freeman: National Health Service revenue expenditure was £110.6 million in 2014/15. The Department funds the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) to provide a health research system in which the NHS supports outstanding individuals working in world-class facilities, conducting leading-edge research focused on the needs of patients and the public. Information on total NIHR spend on research on gender-specific cancers and on fertility treatment is not available. Spend on research funded directly by the NIHR is categorised by Health Research Classification System (HRCS) health categories including ‘cancer’ and ‘reproductive health and childbirth’. There are no HRCS health sub-categories, such as for gender-specific cancers or fertility treatment. NHS England has advised that information on campaigns spending by NHS organisations is not collected centrally. Public Health England (PHE) has run gender-specific campaigns on breast cancer in women over 70, ovarian cancer and prostate cancer in black men as part of Be Clear on Cancer. Information on media spending for these campaigns in each of the last three complete financial years is shown in the table.  2012/13 £ million2013/14 £ million2014/15 £ millionBreast 70+0.501.48-Ovarian0.440.57-Prostate--0.07 Source: PHE Notes: Figures are net plus agency fees and commissions (rounded to nearest £10,000). Figures exclude VAT and Central Office of Information fees. Media spend includes expenditure for advertising on Television, Radio, National Press, Regional Press, Out of Home (Outdoor), Cinema and Digital.

Dialysis Machines

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of additional dialysis beds and staff costs to the NHS in the event of NICE's review of TA 85 [ID456] of immunosuppressant agents for kidney transplant is upheld.

George Freeman: We have made no such estimate. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is currently updating its technology appraisal guidance on immunosuppressive therapy for kidney transplant in adults. NICE consulted on its draft recommendations in August 2015 and published its final draft recommendations in December. NICE currently expects to publish its final guidance later this year. It will be for local National Health Service organisations to consider the impact of the NICE recommendations following guidance publication. NICE will publish a resource impact assessment alongside its guidance to support local implementation of its recommendations.

Mental Health Services

Jason McCartney: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if his Department will change local authority public health team regulations to ensure that (a) public mental health no longer falls under the heading of miscellaneous and (b) there is parity of esteem between physical and mental health in the activity of such teams.

Jane Ellison: We accept entirely the centrality of mental health and wellbeing to public health and the need for parity of esteem across health services. While it is right for local authorities (LAs) to determine their own local priorities and account to their own electorates, the Department’s Public Health Outcomes Framework – which defines areas for improvement across the public health system, and to which LAs must have regard – includes a number of indicators that relate directly to mental health. Public Health England collects and publishes LA-level data for all these indicators and will continue to support and advise LAs on the evidence base for effective mental health interventions. We have no plans to require LAs to report spending on public mental health. LAs’ public health functions cover a wide range of activity, and it is important for central government to limit its demands for information from local government to a minimum. LAs would also be unable to disaggregate their spending on, for example, a drug or alcohol misuse service in order to isolate a sum that could be attributed purely to the mental health aspect of the service.

NHS Walk-in Centres

Mr David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, which NHS Walk-in Centres have closed in the last 12 months.

Jane Ellison: Comprehensive data on walk-in centres is not collected centrally. Since 2007, the local National Health Service has been responsible for NHS walk-in-centres. It is for local commissioners to decide on the availability of these services.

Organs: Donors

Mrs Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the number of hospitals in England that have at least one embedded specialist nurse dealing specifically with organ donation.

Jane Ellison: NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) has a network of specialist nurses for organ donation throughout the United Kingdom who are an integral part of the donation process and provide support to potential donor families. All hospitals in England with donation potential have input and support from specialist nurses for organ donation. There are currently 98 hospitals in England that have specialist nurses for organ donation embedded within them. In addition NHSBT is recruiting specialist nurses to a further seven hospitals, making a total of 105. The level of support and resource allocated varies according to the donation potential for the individual hospital and the number of hospitals in each acute trust. The larger trusts will have a larger team allocated to them. The specialist nurses work to provide support to all hospitals within the trust, adopting a hub and spoke approach. These specialist nurses provide an on call service 24 hours, seven days a week, to ensure each donor referral is responded to in a timely manner and facilitated.

NHS: Procurement

Mr David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, on what grounds Experts by Experience was not considered under TUPE arrangements when Remploy took over its contracts.

Mr David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what representations he has received about the importance of Experts by Experience in the NHS.

Mr David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what representations he has received on the level of payments by Remploy to Experts by Experience; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Gummer: The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has advised that it has taken into account the application of Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 in the new contracts with Choice Support and Remploy Ltd. The CQC issued a press release on 28 January 2016 on this matter. It advised that the CQC’s contractual discussions with Remploy Ltd and Choice Support are still ongoing. The CQC understand that Remploy has now written to Experts by Experience confirming they will pay an hourly rate of £15 for the first six months of the contract - commencing 1 February 2016. Departmental Ministers have not received any representations about the importance of Experts by Experience in the National Health Service or the level of payments by Remploy to Experts by Experience. The Department has not received any direct correspondence about the importance of Experts by Experience in the NHS or the level of payments by Remploy to Experts by Experience. We are, however, aware of one email on this subject that the Department has been copied into that was sent to the CQC.

Fylde and Wyre Clinical Commissioning Group

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much Fylde and Wyre Clinical Commissioning Group spent on contracts with Same Day Walk-In Centres in (a) 2013-14 and (b) 2014-15.

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the cost is of each patient who attends a Same Day Walk-In Centre in the Fylde and Wyre Clinical Commissioning Group area.

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the value is in each financial year of each service contracted out by Fylde and Wyre Clinical Commissioning Group.

Jane Ellison: The data requested are not centrally available. This is a matter for Fylde and Wyre Clinical Commissioning Group.

Chiropody: Training

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many students began podiatry courses in the last three years; what assessment he has made of the reasons for trends in those numbers; and what steps his Department is taking to increase the number of applicants to such courses.

Ben Gummer: This table shows the planned number of podiatry courses available in the last three years, and the actual take up of those training places. Year2013/142014/152015/16Podiatry (planned)365362362Podiatry (actual)339345- Source: multi professional education and training budget monitoring returnsThe number of podiatry students taking up courses for 2015/16 is not yet available.  The Health Education England (HEE) annual Workforce Plan for England 2016/17 will be published by the end of February 2016. Ministers hold regular discussions with HEE on a broad range of workforce supply issues and puts out an annual Mandate to HEE setting its priorities for the coming year. The HEE commissioning and investment plan - 2016/17 includes a forecast increase in supply of podiatrists in the National Health Service workforce of 36.4% by 2020 which is an additional 1,084 full time equivalents coming out of training.

Dementia

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the effect of closing the College of Social Work on the ability of social workers to achieve the best outcome for people with dementia and for their carers.

Alistair Burt: We recognise the significant amount of work that the College of Social Work undertook and its achievements in helping raising professional standards for social work. Practice guidance for social work with people with dementia and their carers was developed by the College and published in 2015, helping raise the quality of social work practice in this crucial area. The Chief Social Workers and officials supported the College to ensure that this and other resources continue to be available through the sector and play a role in the future development and growth of social work.On 14 January, the Secretary of State for Education announced the creation of a new regulatory body for social work, responsible for driving up practice standards and raising the status of the social work profession. This body will support the development of further specialisms in social work practice, including dementia, helping deliver our ambition to continue to raise the quality and status of a profession which plays such a vital role in improving the lives of our most vulnerable people.

Dementia

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether all newly-appointed healthcare assistants and social care support workers receive training on dementia as part of the Care Certificate process.

Ben Gummer: As of 1 April 2015, all new health care assistants and social care support workers are expected to attain the new Care Certificate within their first 12 weeks of employment. In order to do so, each new worker must demonstrate to their employer that they meet all 15 of the Care Certificate standards of fundamental skills and knowledge. Standard 9 of the Care Certificate concerns awareness of mental health, dementia and learning disabilities. In meeting this standard, each worker must show that they understand: the needs and experiences of people with mental health conditions, dementia or learning disabilities; the importance of promoting their health and wellbeing; the adjustments which may be necessary in delivering their care; and the importance of early detection. They must also prove that they understand the legal context, including mental capacity considerations.

Dementia

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, (a) how many and (b) what proportion of (i) NHS staff, (ii) healthcare assistants and (iii) social care support workers have received training on dementia in each of the last three years.

Ben Gummer: The Department does not collect data centrally on how many National Health Service staff, healthcare assistants and social care support workers have received training on dementia. This information is held locally.

Trauma

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many trauma cases were recorded across all NHS hospitals in each of the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many trauma cases were recorded in NHS A&E departments in each of the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: Information on the number of trauma cases treated at National Health Service hospitals is not collected centrally. Trauma is not a formal term by which activity is recorded.

Patients

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what statistics his Department collects on the body mass index of patients admitted as in-patients or out-patients at hospitals; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what information his Department collects on the number of A&E visits by patients who are (a) above and (b) below the recommended body mass index to NHS hospitals in each of the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: The information requested is not collected centrally. The Health and Social Care Information Centre does not collect body mass index details as part of the accident and emergency or Hospital Episode Statistics datasets.

Muscular Dystrophy: Clinical Trials

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of clinical trial capacity at muscle centres.

George Freeman: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I provided on 13 January 2016 to Question 21102.

Neuromuscular Disorders

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what progress is being made on establishing NHS-funded neuromuscular networks in each region.

Jane Ellison: NHS England is responsible for commissioning specialised neurological services, including some services for patients with neuromuscular disorders. NHS England has published a service specification for neurological care that includes an exemplar service specification for neuromuscular conditions that sets out what providers must have in place to offer evidence-based, safe and effective services. The specification can be found at the following link: www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/d04-neurosci-spec-neuro.pdf National Health Service providers, working with local area teams, may establish neuromuscular networks if they consider it would benefit service provision; such decisions are a local matter.

Neuromuscular Disorders

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans NHS England has to integrate standards for specialist neuromuscular care within the paediatric neurology service specification.

Jane Ellison: Children with neuromuscular conditions are included within the current service specification for paediatric neurology: https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/e09-paedi-neurology.pdf

Health Services: Greater London

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the report of the Independent Healthcare Commission for North West London, published in December 2015.

Ben Gummer: The Government is clear the reconfiguration of front line health services is a matter for the local National Health Service. Services should be tailored to meet the needs of the local population and proposals for substantial service change must meet the four tests of reconfiguration which are (i) support from general practitioner commissioners (ii) strengthened public and patient engagement (iii) clarity on the clinical evidence base (iv) support for patient choice. It is right that reconfiguration is led by the local NHS, working closely with the support of commissioners including NHS England, the Trust Development Authority and Monitor. We are advised that on 14 January 2016, the North West London Clinical Board considered the Independent Healthcare Commission report for North West London and its recommendations of the Shaping a Healthier Future programme. We understand that the board welcomed this public scrutiny of the plans and agreed with the report that the programme should continue to engage with the public, local authorities, patient groups and other partners. The unanimous conclusion of the board’s clinicians was that the report offered no substantive evidence or credible alternative to consider that would lead to better outcomes for patients in North West London above the existing plans in place, which are designed by doctors based on significant clinical data, evidence and experience.